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1959 Philadelphia Eagles season

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1959 Philadelphia Eagles season
OwnerHappy Hundred
Head coachBuck Shaw
Results
Record7–5
Division place2nd (tied) NFL Eastern
Playoff finishDid not qualify

The 1959 Philadelphia Eagles season was the franchise's 27th season in the National Football League. They improved on their previous output of 2–9–1, winning seven games.[1] The team failed to qualify for the playoffs for the tenth consecutive season.

Off-season

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The Eagles held training camp in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

NFL Draft

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The 1959 NFL draft was held on December 2, 1958 (rounds 1–4) and January 21, 1959 (rounds 5–30). The draft consisted of 30 rounds with each of the 12 NFL teams having one draft pick in each round. A total of 360 players were selected in this year's draft. There was no lottery bonus pick this year as it had run its course; all 12 teams had been given a bonus pick in previous drafts.

As the Green Bay Packers had the worst record in the previous season at 1–10–1, they had the first draft pick, and selected Randy Duncan, the quarterback for the Iowa Hawkeyes. The Packers' lone win in 1958 had been over the Eagles, 38–35, on October 26 in Green Bay.

The Eagles and the Chicago Cardinals both had 2–9–1 records in 1958, which were tied for the 2nd-worst record in the league, so they rotated in picking 2nd or 3rd in each round. Despite their poor records in 1958, both of these teams had defeated the eventual Eastern Conference champion New York Giants that year. The Eagles traded their first-round pick, the 2nd overall pick in the draft, to the Los Angeles Rams for quarterback Norm Van Brocklin. The Eagles made their first draft selection in round 2 with the 15th overall pick.

In 1959 the Eagles and Packers would both improve to 7–5–0. Then in 1960 they would each win their respective conference championships and meet in the NFL Championship game.

Player selections

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The table shows the Eagles' selections and what picks they had that were traded away and the team that ended up with that pick.[2] It is possible the Eagles' pick ended up with this team via another team that the Eagles made a trade with. Not shown are acquired picks that the Eagles traded away.

= Pro Bowler [3] = Hall of Famer
Rd Pick # Player Position College
1 2 Pick Taken By
Chicago Bears
2 15 J. D. Smith Tackle Rice Owls
3 26 Wray Carlton Back Duke Blue Devils
4 39 Jim Grazione Quarterback Villanova Wildcats
5 51 Nick Mumley Tackle Purdue Boilermakers
6 62 Al Benecick Guard Syracuse Orange
7 75 Pick Taken By
Los Angeles Rams
8 86 Wilmer Fowler Back Northwestern Wildcats
9 99 Gene Johnson Back Cincinnati Bearcats
10 110 Rollie West Back Villanova Wildcats
11 123 Art Powell Wide receiver San Jose State Spartans
12 134 Howard Keys Tackle Oklahoma State Cowboys
13 147 Dick Stillwagon Back Purdue Boilermakers
14 158 Jack Smith Tackle Clemson Tigers
15 171 Jim Poteete Center Mississippi State Bulldogs
16 182 Ken Paduch Tackle Auburn Tigers
17 195 Bill Craig Tackle Villanova
18 206 Jim Benson Back Georgia Tech
19 219 Alan Miller Back Boston College
20 230 Jim Payne Guard Clemson
21 243 Bob Salerno Guard Colorado
22 254 Jim Bowie Tackle Kentucky
23 267 Dick Williams End Southern
24 278 Gerry Benn Tackle Oklahoma State
25 291 Dick Jamieson Quarterback Bradley
26 302 Jim Burks Tackle Virginia Tech
27 315 Lowell Jenkins Tackle Wisconsin
28 326 Leo Sexton End Auburn Tigers
29 339 John Stolte Tackle Kansas State Wildcats
30 350 Angelo Mosca Tackle Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 27 at San Francisco 49ers L 14–24 0–1 Kezar Stadium 41,697
2 October 4 New York Giants W 49–21 1–1 Franklin Field 27,023
3 October 11 Pittsburgh Steelers W 28–24 2–1 Franklin Field 27,343
4 October 18 at New York Giants L 7–24 2–2 Yankee Stadium 68,783
5 October 25 at Chicago Cardinals W 28–24 3–2 Metropolitan Stadium 20,112
6 November 1 Washington Redskins W 30–23 4–2 Franklin Field 39,854
7 November 8 at Cleveland Browns L 7–28 4–3 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 58,275
8 November 15 Chicago Cardinals W 27–17 5–3 Franklin Field 28,887
9 November 22 Los Angeles Rams W 23–20 6–3 Franklin Field 47,425
10 November 29 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 0–31 6–4 Forbes Field 22,191
11 December 6 at Washington Redskins W 34–14 7–4 Griffith Stadium 24,325
12 December 13 Cleveland Browns L 21–28 7–5 Franklin Field 45,952
Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text.

Standings

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NFL Eastern Conference
W L T PCT CONF PF PA STK
New York Giants 10 2 0 .833 8–2 284 170 W4
Philadelphia Eagles 7 5 0 .583 6–4 268 278 L1
Cleveland Browns 7 5 0 .583 6–4 270 214 W1
Pittsburgh Steelers 6 5 1 .545 6–4 257 216 W1
Washington Redskins 3 9 0 .250 2–8 185 350 L5
Chicago Cardinals 2 10 0 .167 2–8 234 324 L6
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Roster

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(All time List of Philadelphia Eagles players in franchise history)

= 1959 All-Star Selection[5] = Hall of Famer
  • + After name means 1st team selection
NO. Player AGE POS GP GS WT HT YRS College
Buck Shaw 61 COACH 1958
record
7–5–0		 Eagles
Lifetime
9–14–1		 NFL
Lifetime
80–53–5		 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
50 Darrel Aschbacher 24 G 11 0 220 6–1 Rookie Boise State,Oregon
33 Billy Ray Barnes 24 HB 12 0 201 5–11 2 Wake Forest
60 Chuck Bednarik 33 LB-C 12 0 233 6–3 10 Pennsylvania Quakers
36 Dick Bielski 27 E-FB 12 0 224 6–1 4 Maryland Terrapins
40 Tom Brookshier 28 DB 12 0 196 6–0 6 Colorado Buffalos
78 Marion Campbell 30 DE-DT-MG-G-T 11 0 250 6–3 5 Georgia Bulldogs
67 Stan Campbell 29 G 12 12 226 6–0 7 Iowa State
21 Jimmy Carr 26 DB-LB-HB 12 0 206 6–1 4 Charleston (WV)
63 Tom Catlin 28 LB-C 12 0 213 6–1 6 Oklahoma Sooners
45 Paige Cothren 24 K 7 0 201 5–11 2 Mississippi
74 Jerry DeLucca 23 T-DT 12 0 247 6–2 Rookie Middle Tenn. State Blue Raiders
65 Jerry Huth 26 G 10 0 226 6–0 3 Wake Forest Demon Deacons
27 Gene Johnson 24 DB 12 0 187 6–0 Rookie Cincinnati Bearcats
9 Sonny Jurgensen 25 QB 12 0 202 5–11 2 Duke Blue Devils
73 Ed Khayat 24 DT-DE-T 9 0 240 6–3 2 Tulane Green Wave
43 Walt Kowalczyk 24 FB-DB 12 0 208 6–0 1 Michigan State Spartans
61 Tom Louderback 26 LB-C-G 12 0 235 6–2 1 San Jose State
80 Ken MacAfee 30 E-TE 4 0 212 6–2 5 Alabama Crimson Tide
75 Jim McCusker 23 T 12 0 246 6–2 1 Pittsburgh Panthers
25 Tommy McDonald 25 FL-HB-SE-WR 12 0 178 5–9 2 Oklahoma Sooners
29 John Nocera 25 LB 12 0 220 6–1 Rookie Iowa Hawkeyes
70 Don Owens 27 DT-T 12 0 255 6–5 2 Southern Miss Golden Eagles
32 Joe Pagliei 25 FB 7 0 220 6–0 Rookie Clemson Tigers
26 Clarence Peaks 24 FB 12 0 218 6–1 2 Michigan State Spartans
53 Bob Pellegrini 25 LB-G 12 0 233 6–2 3 Maryland Terrapins
87 Art Powell 22 SE-DB-WR 12 0 211 6–3 Rookie San Jose State Spartans
44 Pete Retzlaff 28 E-HB-TE 10 0 211 6–1 3 South Dakota State Jackrabbits
72 Jess Richardson 29 DT 12 0 261 6–2 6 Alabama Crimson Tide
22 Lee Riley 27 DB 12 0 192 6–1 4 Univ. of Detroit-Mercy Titans
66 Joe Robb 22 DE-LB 12 0 238 6–3 Rookie TCU Horned Frogs
30 Theron Sapp 24 FB-HB 12 0 203 6–1 Rookie Georgia Bulldogs
76 J.D. Smith 23 T 11 11 250 6–2 Rookie Rice Owls
68 Bill Striegel 23 G-T-LB 12 0 235 6–2 Rookie Pacific
11 Norm Van Brocklin 33 QB 12 12 190 6–1 10 Oregon Ducks
83 Bobby Walston 31 E-HB-K 12 0 190 6–0 8 Georgia Bulldogs
51 Chuck Weber 29 LB-DE-G 12 0 229 6–1 4 West Chester Golden Rams
88 Jerry Wilson 23 DE 12 0 238 6–3 Rookie Auburn Tigers
37 players
team average		 26.1 12 220.1 6–1.2 2.8

Season summary

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Week 3 vs Steelers

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Week Three: Pittsburgh Steelers (1–1) at Philadelphia Eagles (1–1)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Steelers 7 3 7724
Eagles 7 7 7728

at Franklin Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

  • Date: October 11, 1959
  • Game attendance: 27,343
  • Referee: Bud Brubaker
  • Box Score
Team Category Player Statistics
Steelers Passing Bobby Layne 18/33, 209 Yds, 2 TD, INT
Rushing Tom Tracy 11 Rush, 33 Yds
Receiving Tom Tracy 4 Rec, 70 Yds, TD
Eagles Passing Norm Van Brocklin 13/27, 172 Yds, TD, 2 INT
Rushing Clarence Peaks 14 Rush, 42 Yds
Receiving Tommy McDonald 4 Rec, 66 Yds, TD

Postseason

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Before the start of the 1960 Season, but after the 1960 NFL draft, on March 19, the NFL had an expansion draft for the Dallas Cowboys. The Philadelphia Eagles lost, Dick Bielski a tight end, Gerry Delucca an offensive tackle, and Bil Striegel, a linebacker.

Honors and awards

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Pro Bowl selections – East Team

    • Norm Van Brocklin – QB
    • Billy Barnes – HB
    • Tommy McDonald – Flanker
    • Marion Campbell – DT
    • Tom Brookshier – CB

League leaders[6]

    • Norm Van Brocklin finishes 2nd in pass attempts with 340
    • Norm Van Brocklin finishes 2nd in pass completions with 191
    • Norm Van Brocklin finishes 2nd in passing yards with 2617
    • Norm Van Brocklin finishes 3rd in passing yards per Attempt Avg with 7.70
    • Norm Van Brocklin finishes 3rd in passing touchdowns with 14
    • Tommy McDonald finishes 2nd in pass receptions with 47
    • Tommy McDonald finishes 3rd in pass receiving yards with 846
    • Tommy McDonald finishes 2nd in pass reception touchdowns with 10
    • Tommy McDonald finishes 2nd (tied with 8) in punt return for a touchdown with 1
    • Tommy McDonald finishes 2nd in kickoff returns with 24
    • Art Powell finishes 2nd in kickoff returns avg. 27.1

References

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  1. ^ 1959 Philadelphia Eagles
  2. ^ "1959 National Football League Draft | Pro Football Hall of Fame Official Site". Archived from the original on September 29, 2012. Retrieved June 4, 2011.
  3. ^ Players are identified as Pro Bowlers if they were selected for the Pro-Bowl at any time in their careers.
  4. ^ "Angelo Mosca". CFLapedia. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
  5. ^ Players are identified as 1959 Pro Bowl selections.
  6. ^ "RotoWire Fantasy Football, Baseball, Basketball and More". Archived from the original on June 10, 2011. Retrieved June 5, 2011.
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